The Torre del Bierzo rail disaster occurred on 3 January 1944 near the village of Torre del Bierzo in the El Bierzo region of Spain's León province when three trains collided inside a tunnel. Although the official death toll was 78, and at the time it was estimated to be 200–250, the most recent study has estimated it at no more than 100. Overview At 20:30 the previous evening the Galicia mail express, consisting of 12 carriages hauled by two 4-8-0 ‘Mastodon’ steam locomotives, left Madrid bound for A Coruña. It was running two hours late when it arrived at Astorga and was having problems with its brakes; nine minutes were spent at Astorga checking them. Later, one of the locomotives was removed due to a hot axle box. The train was now three hours late, and despite serious problems with its brakes during the steep descent through Branuelas, the decision was made to continue. The train was scheduled to stop at Albares but failed to do so, despite all hand-brakes on the carriages and sand being applied. The Albares station master immediately telephoned Torre del Bierzo to say that the train had lost its brakes on the steep descent. At Torre del Bierzo the station master ran for his office and attempts were made to put sleepers on the line to slow the runaway train, but these efforts were to no avail and the train ran through with its whistle blowing incessantly and its brake shoes applied, heading for tunnel No. 20, located just beyond the station. Meanwhile, a shunting engine and three carriages were travelling through the tunnel away from the station having been warned by the station master about the runaway mail train. The last two carriages were still in the tunnel when they were struck by the mail train, as were the first six carriages of the mail train, which began to burn, their wood construction being ignited by the train's gas lighting. Unaware of the first collision, a coal train was approaching the tunnel from the opposite direction with 27 loaded wagons. As the crash had destroyed the signaling cables, the signals were set at clear when the coal train left tunnel No. 21. The unharmed driver of the shunting engine desperately tried to warn the oncoming coal train which managed to slow, but it still ploughed into the shunting locomotive's train, killing the shunting